I can tell the holiday season has begun. You know how? I foolishly went shopping at Towne Center plaza yesterday with about a million other people.

It wasn’t even what I would consider one of the busiest times of the day, about 1 pm, but I still had to wait through two lights on Ridge Road to turn into the parking lot. And when I finally got in, forget about finding any parking close to the stores. And watch where you’re walking, because the creative driving season has begun.

And it’s all going to get worse.

I did notice that the Powers That Be finally caved to common sense and installed a fourth stop sign at the intersection near Target and Old Navy, just as you enter from Ridge Road. It used to be a three-way stop, which was never a good idea. Having no traffic control there either 1) encouraged drivers to speed through the intersection with nary a thought to pedestrians or other traffic, or 2) confused people who tried to stop anyway, causing their own share of near-accidents and angry drivers. Now, with four stop signs, there’s no confusion. Everyone stops.

So now that we’ve made that little improvement, how about a left turn arrow on Ridge Road….?

Y’all know that I’m a regular blood donor. Obsessive, my daughter would say. So you understand that I was rather disappointed when an unexpected trip out of town caused me to miss my last blood donation appointment. So I’ve been keeping my eye out for notifications from the Red Cross about other local options in the near future.

It just so happened that I got a mailing today from the Red Cross advertising three upcoming drives. The first one, however, wasn’t until December 14, and I sure didn’t want to have to wait that long. And that’s crazy season, anyway.

So I was really really excited to see a little sign as I was driving around today about a donation drive at the Elks Lodge this coming Tuesday. Apparently it’s too small a drive to show up on the Red Cross’ radar. That should do fine, thank you. Here are the details in case anyone else wants to join me:

I love getting emails from folks who’ve never written to me before. Usually they have a question they’d like me to follow up on, have a comment about something I’ve written, or want to let me know about something great that’s going on in Webster.

It was the latter reason that Mike Nelson, communications manager at The Maplewood nursing home wrote to me yesterday. Mike’s just a tad proud of the good things happening at the facility and he wanted to let me know about one of them. It was a special event held Veterans Day in honor of the nearly 20 veterans who reside at The Maplewood.

The day’s commemoration began immediately after lunch with a flag-raising, accompanied by bugler Steve Forman (USMC). Blustery weather kept the veterans inside, where they and several residents watched from one of the facility’s restaurants.

It was moving ceremony, nicely captured in a blogposted on The Maplewood’s website by Gary Sacco, Director of Activities and Recreation. He wrote,

“The vets were emotional. Harold started singing patriotic tunes, joined by others. Pete N (Navy WWII), said a prayer for those who never returned home. ‘Sixty-plus years have not blunted these guys’ strong feelings,’ I thought to myself quietly. ‘Life defining.’ Everyone present immediately felt it.”

Each veteran was presented with a flag lapel pin and certificate of appreciation. Later in the afternoon, Forman moved from the bugle to the piano to perform a set of patriotic favorites.

“It was a special day,” Sacco concluded. “I was tired from all the preparation and activity, but then I thought about it – our vets stormed the beach at Normandy, raised our flag at Iwo Jima and charged barefoot through the Belgian snow to bend Hitler’s Bulge back towards Berlin. With that context in mind, I felt pretty spry!”

P.S. The Maplewood’s annual Holiday Bazaar is going on today and tomorrow. It benefits Hope House and The Bivona Child Advocacy Center. There are plenty of craft vendors, baked goods and other tasty treats, a raffle, and more. And yes, it is open to the public. Click herefor more information on Facebook. The Maplewood is located at 100 Daniel Drive in Webster.

This year’s Webster District Play is almost certainly one you’re familiar with. It’s Thornton Wilder’s Our Town, described by Director Joann Hamm as “America’s most famous play — very imaginative (and) unconventional.” Narrated by the Stage Manager, the play features no scenery and minimal props, so cast members must rely on pantomime and other creative theatrical elements.

This is the seventh time Hamm, a Webster Schroeder English teacher, has directed Thornton Wilder’s classic. It was actually the very first high school production she ever directed, as a new teacher in Pittsford back in 1962. She’s hoping that some alumni from those days might be in the audience this weekend.

Webster’s annual district play is the one performance every year in which all Webster community members are invited to participate. That means you’ll see a lot of faces you recognize on stage; maybe some of your neighbors, even your kids’ teachers and principals. About ten teachers and administrators will be featured over the course of this weekend’s four performances.

Our Town will be presented on the Webster Schroeder stage on tonight, Friday and Saturday at 7 pm, and Saturday afternoon at 1 pm. Tickets are just $5 each and will be sold at the door.

Is there a “friendly” pricing competition between the Sunoco gas stations, located on Empire & Plank & the one on Ridge Rd at 5 Mile Line Rd.? These are the 2 main stations I use; and typically fill up at the one with lower price per gallon.

In the last few weeks, the prices at these stations have been fairly close, but, in the last week, price for regular has dropped to $3.47 at Ridge & 5 Mile Line location; and on 11/15, price at Empire & Plank location was $3.49. I chose to fill up there. Then while driving to work on morning of 11/16, saw the gas price of $3.47 and laughed to myself at the $0.02 difference, because it really did seem as if a friendly competition was going on.

Both locations carry similar products, but Empire & Plank station also has Salvatore’s Pizza inside. The products served inside both stations don’t influence me, but, the gas price does; so, if prices remain within a few cents of each other, I’ll just use the one in the direction I’m traveling.

Friendly competition or coincidence, I do like seeing the price of gas decline!!

As the holiday season approaches with frightening speed, news releases about holiday events are beginning to fill my email box. Let me throw a few of them at you now:

The first is a special Thanksgiving Eve Service of Praise and Holy Communion at Immanuel Evangelical Lutheran Church, Wednesday, November 23 at 7 pm. Pastor Johanna Johnson and Pastor Paul Shoop will lead the service, and everyone in the community is invited. There will be a collection of non-perishable food items for the Webster Food Cupboard. Immanuel is located at 131 West Main Street in Webster, at the corner of Daniel Drive. Parking is available behind the church. For more information contact the church office at 872-5180 or visit Immanuel’s website at www.immanuelwebster.org.

Mark your calendars now for Saturday December 3, for Webster’s annual White Christmas in the Village and Holiday Parade of Lights. This is a beautiful way to begin the Christmas season. There will be horse-drawn wagon rides, storytelling, strolling carolers, cookie making, and of course a visit from Santa Claus. Plus it’s all capped off with the Parade of Lights down Main Street beginning at 6:30 pm. The fun begins at 3 pm. Click herefor more information.

Also on Saturday December 3, there will be a computer/electronics recycling event from 9 am-1 pm at the Webster Recreation Center 1350 Chiyoda Drive. All you have to do is drive through, and items will be unloaded for you. Donations will benefit the RFC Boys U17 soccer team. There’s no charge.

On Sunday December 4, the Chorus of the Genesee will present a free concert at the Harmony House beginning at 2 pm.

The 19th annual Christmas Cookie Sale of the Women’s Club of Webster will take place in the community room of the Webster Public Library on Saturday, December 10, from 10 am to noon, or until all the cookies are sold out. Proceeds from the sale will benefit the club’s scholarship funds and other programs in the Webster community. For more information contact Audrey Pavone at 872-1434.

The Genetaska Women’s Club will meet at 11:30 am on Dec. 21 for their annual holiday party at Midvale Country Club on Baird Road. The cost is $20 and includes lunch, door prizes, entertainment and a gift exchange. Personal hygiene items will be collected for men and women veterans. For more information about the club or luncheon call Rose at 872-4687.

Does your organization have a holiday event coming up that you would like publicized? Let me know about it!

Now, bear in mind, it doesn’t take much to get us excited (if you read us regularly, that revelation does not surprise you). But the discovery I made yesterday was pretty neat.

The D&C recently rolled out an update to the WordPress program we bloggers use. It’s got a few more bells and whistles, and the interface looks a bit different, but in general it does pretty much the same stuff it did before. With one notable exception: it’s much easier now to see if anyone has posted a comment.

I’ll show you what I mean. Right now, look up at the top of this blog posting. There’s a line there with my name, the date and the time I posted the blog. Right after that it says “View comments.” THAT is what I’m so excited about. If someone has posted a comment, it will say so, right there. “View 1 comment” it will say. Then you can click on it and see the comment.

Before this change, we bloggers had to click through every individual blog posting to see if a comment had been made. That was a very tedious process, which means that I’ve probably inadvertently ignored a lot of comments.

But no longer. Now it’s easier to see if you all have something to say, and easier for you to made comments and see others’. Today would be a good time to start. I’m actively looking for ideas of things to write about. (You know I’m running out ideas when I start blogging about blogging.) Got a question you want followed up on? Got a complaint about Webster you want to air? Please email me!

Did you happen to attend the benefit pasta dinner last night hosted at the Knights of Columbus? I swear, most of Webster turned out for this event, which the Knights held in honor of 11-year old Simon Harris, who recently lost a courageous battle with cancer. I was honored to be among the volunteers helping out at the dinner, which ultimately fed more than 800 people. It’s always fun and fulfilling to be a part of these events, made even more so by seeing so many familiar faces and meeting so many new people.

I’ve worked a lot of fund-raising food-fests like these, both breakfasts and dinners, but all of those others paled in comparison with last night. The Knights are obviously well experienced with putting on such affairs, because they moved those 800 people through effortlessly, serving salads and bread, drinks and plates of pasta and sauce in waves. They were assisted by a small army of volunteers, representing several community groups including the Aquinas football team, Bay View Karate, the Scouts, and many of the Harris’s neighbors. On top of that, more than 100 local businesses — and a dozen individuals — donated items for raffles and a silent auction.

Basically, the outpouring of support shown by our community at last night’s dinner is yet another example of why Webster is such a great place to live. It’s like we’re all one big family.

Thank you to the Knights of Columbus for hosting the Simon Harris Benefit Pasta Dinner and pulling it all together. And thanks to everyone from the servers to the dishwashers for helping make the event a tremendous success.

Carol of the Leaves

(sung to the tune of “It’s the Most Wonderful Time of the Year.”)(Really. It’s much more fun if you sing along with it.)

It’s the most back-breaking time of the year,
When winter is calling,
the leaves are a’falling
And bagging time’s here,
It’s the most back-breaking time of the year

Yes, the most colorful season is here.
From the leaves on the trees
To the frustrated screams
That fall on your ears,
Yes, the most colorful season is here.

I think shoveling is better
Though snow’s cold and wetter,
I just push it and that’s not so bad.
Then the plows come on by
And they sweep it aside.
And I don’t have to stuff it in bags.

It’s the most back-breaking time of the year.
Some day thanks to our pleas,
Penfield WILL pick up leaves.
They’ll finally get it in gear.
It’s the most back-breaking time,
Yes, the most back-breaking time,
It’s the most back-breaking time of the year.

Click on the image to see a YouTube video of the Rascal Flatts performance. Kate is the center performer in the group to the right.

Did you watch the Country Music Awards on Wednesday night? If so, then whether you realized it or not, you saw a recent Webster Schroeder graduate and one of Webster’s finest musicians performing backup for Rascal Flatts.

Her name is Kate Lee Gurnow, and she’s one of the most talented fiddle players I have ever seen.

I first saw this young lady perform ten years ago at a musical program at the Webster Public Library in which my then-middle-school-aged son Sean was also participating. Kate was only in 4th grade at the time, but her playing skills blew the audience away. My son, also a budding fiddle player, called her talent “scary.” It was obvious even then that she had a bright musical future.

Over the years, Sean and Kate have become good friends, and I had the pleasure of watching her perform at high school concerts and with her band No Strings Attached. It was no surprise to anyone, I think, that she decided to attend Belmont University in Nashville and pursue her dream to make a career in music.

Wednesday night that career got a big boost when she took the stage with Rascal Flatts. She was only one member of the back-up band, but that’s still pretty cool; on stage with a famous band, with a national television audience watching.

Click here to see a YouTube video of the performance. Kate is the performer in the center of the group on the right.

Missy Rosenberry, a graduate of Cornell University, spent many of her post-college years in radio, advertising and public relations. After taking most of the 1990s off to have her three children, she is now a full-time teaching assistant for the Webster school district, and a part-time karate instructor. She and husband Jack have lived in the Webster/Penfield area with the kids for 11 years. She'd like to use her blog to help others learn more about the Webster community.

Roderick Spratling is a husband and father of two who has lived in the community for over 18 years. Born and raised in Detroit, Spratling is a 1976 graduate of Michigan State University who earned a master’s degree in Manufacturing Management & Leadership from RIT in 2004. He’s a Purchasing Consultant in Global Purchasing for Xerox Corp., and he enjoys softball, bowling, photography, and traveling.